Fifa made the jump to next-gen consoles and is generally regarded as continuing in the recent good strong of games in the series. Fifa 14 on the PS4 while solid is perhaps understated and the game appears to be tired now. Here is a look at Fifa 14 on the PS4.

Fifa 14 on the PS4 could be mistaken for Fifa 14 on the PS3. You could even go as far as saying it is largely the same as Fifa 13 on the PS3. Because while the graphics have improved and the lighting has gotten better, the gameplay has not changed between Fifa 13 or the different console versions of Fifa 14. The game sure packs a lot of content and playing options for your buck. Yet as is the case most years, Fifa 14 is the same game different skin.

For those that have not played Fifa before, it is a football simulation game in which you can play football directly. I would say Fifa is an easy to play and hard to master game. It certainly has more variety and depth than the Pro Evo series despite the PES games being arguably superior in gameplay. There are a variety of modes available such as be a pro, co-op and so forth. The main draw of Fifa is undoubtedly Ultimate Team which is one of the best game modes around.

Now with this version and the Xbox One version Fifa runs on the ‘ignite’ engine which is said to enhance gameplay dramatically. This is where EA and games like Fifa lose faith. The differences mainly come in animation rather than gameplay design or mechanics. The stadium animations are largely stoic and pointless. A lot on reddit pointed out that Gran Turismo 6 had bad stadium animation yet Fifa 14 on the PS4 has equally bad animations.

The game in my opinion fails to be a definitive improvement from last year’s game which incidentally was a very good Fifa arguably the best yet. Fifa 14 stays in the same spot and has improved graphics to boot yet the gameplay still remains a very much love/hate affair. Goals can be well crafted or the game can through up harsh decisions to stop you from scoring. The offside rule is ridiculous in this game. If the foot of the attacker is even slightly out of line and I mean slightly, flag goes up.

The same goes for defending. The a.i is generally terrible on your team and runs to make up lost ground, lost balls are generally all in vain. Its frustrating when you gently tap pass and the ball goes miles when you only wanted it to go so far. The same goes for headers and crosses. I just think that the game is the same from what I experienced from the PS3 demo and the PS4 version isn’t a huge stump up.

Granted as far as a game goes, it is deep in content. Ultimate Team is a game in its own right but with career modes and various online modes, there is hours of enjoyment to be had. It is a shame that flaws that have crept under the surface in previous games have also carried on into the next-gen version. The ignite engine is also not exactly next generation either. It could work on current consoles albeit with a little added effort.

Alas what we have for next-gen owners is a PS3/360 Fifa prettied up slightly for new console owners. The flaws that have persisted from previous games are made obvious because of added expectations. Fifa 14 is not a suitable game to demonstrate what the PS4 or Xbox One can do. It is a solid football game mostly but you will have a hard time with it and that is something I do not say lightly.

What Is Good?

+Ultimate Team is a very good game mode and continues to be a game changer for football games.

+Lots of things to do-hours of content.

+Better lighting which makes the pitch and grounds stand out more.

What Is Bad?

-Team mate a.i is so inconsistent. A lot of games are left to chance and the controller mapping, input latency is frustrating.

-Graphics are not a major improvement and the ‘ignite’ engine fails to impress.

-No major improvements in gameplay from Fifa 13.

Fifa 14 on the next-gen consoles is a generally fun, solid and barnstorming frustrating experience. Some will love it, have a good time with the game while others will have a bad time with it. Despite putting much time into it, I both enjoyed and disliked the game. What I got the feeling was I was playing the same game from last year or I was playing a game on the PS3, not PS4. For that, Fifa 14 pays the price. With added expectation and added capability, Fifa 14 should rise above the samey-ish game to being better and well rounded. 7/10.

This entry was posted
on Thursday, February 27th, 2014 at 2:56 pm and is filed under Gaming.
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